Beverly Kirk

Beverly Kirk joined the Newhouse School in 2022 as Director of Washington Programs. In this position, she will expand and lead the school’s Washington, D.C. student programs across multiple communications majors with a primary focus on journalism. She is based in Washington, and will be part of the new Syracuse University Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship.

Kirk, a seasoned professional with more than two decades of experience in journalism, most recently served as executive director of JOURNEY to Lead, a nonprofit women’s leadership initiative. She is a non-resident senior associate of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) International Security Program. She previously was fellow and director for outreach for the CSIS International Security Program and director of the CSIS Smart Women, Smart Power Initiative, where she hosted the “Smart Women, Smart Power” podcast featuring women leaders from around the world who are experts in foreign policy, national security, international business and development. Before that, she was director of the CSIS multimedia production and design studio iDeas Lab.

Before joining CSIS, Kirk was a journalist working for local and national news organizations including NBC, NPR and PBS. She spent much of her career focused on domestic and international politics and government. She also founded a media consulting company and has expertise in media curriculum design. She is a member of the national advisory board of the University of Kentucky Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues and a member of the board of the Leadership Council for Women in National Security.

Kirk holds an M.A. in diplomacy and international commerce from the University of Kentucky and is a summa cum laude graduate of Western Kentucky University with degrees in history and broadcast journalism.